Homeward Bound, I wish I was, Homeward Bound

August 15, 2006 - 10:02 PM by

Israel is a small country, and our wars are fought on the homeland or very close by. So national news is personal news . . . a fact of which radio DJ’s are well aware. Today I was in a taxi, and the driver had the radio tuned to National Army Radio. They talked about soldiers who were killed in Lebanon . . . and then played Celine Dion’s “My Heart Will Go On.” Talk about sappy, and yet it was eerily effective. I asked the driver, and discovered that the verb “to wring,” as in “the DJ is wringing our hearts out” is l’m'och. And yes, it can also be used when describing the wringing of a towel.

Rahel of “Elms in the Yard” had a similar observation, but on a happier note:

The Hebrew word bayit means—among other things—“home.” The Hebrew word ha-baita, which means “homeward,” is the theme being played exclusively right now on Radio 3, the national Israeli radio station that plays only Israeli music. Just about every song Radio 3 is playing right now speaks of the joy and relief of coming back home after having been away. Kama tov she-bata ha-baita—it’s so good you’re home. Ani hozer ha-baita (actually, a translation of a popular Italian song, I believe)—I’m on my way home. Yonatan, sa ha-baita—Yonatan, head home. One after another, popular and beloved Israeli songs about coming home, going home, being home. Soldiers coming home from Lebanon, residents of the northern region coming back from the places throughout the country where they had taken refuge from the rockets. Ha-baita. Home.

Tags: • Category: A New Reality 

Comments

One Comment on Homeward Bound, I wish I was, Homeward Bound

  1. michael on Wed, Aug 16th 2006 1:28 AM

    2. what yalla lech habaita moti by sarit hadad? :D

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